Latest Articles about Europe
Moscow Focusing on Åland Islands as Target in Event of War With NATO
Executive Summary: Moscow is focusing on the Åland Islands as a potential target in the event of war with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) now that the West has taken new steps to boost the defense of Gotland and the Svalbard islands. This Russian... MORE
Russia’s Disinformation Campaign in North America Becomes Smarter and More Flexible
Executive Summary: Russian state-run media outlets, such as RT, have transformed their disinformation campaigns in the West to adapt to local situations, exerting subtle influence on domestic media to conduct a more covert operation. Moscow is increasingly utilizing embedded propaganda by funding foreign media voices,... MORE
Legacy of Putin’s War on Terror Weighs Heavily on Modern Russia
Executive Summary: Russian President Vladimir Putin was propelled into power amid a series of deadly terrorist attacks in Russia in the 1990s. His tactics to combat this “war on terror” are being used today against Ukraine. In the 1990s, Russian propaganda and a boost to... MORE
NATO’s Outgoing Leader Stoltenberg Reflects on Missed Opportunities in Ukraine (Part One)
Executive Summary: NATO’s outgoing Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, recently offered his first retrospective assessment of the Alliance’s Ukraine policy. Retrospective assessments recognize that the United States and its major allies failed to deter Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine in 2022. While member states may have... MORE
Rawa Majid and Ismael Abdo: Swedish Gangsters Revealed as Iranian Proxies
Executive Summary: In late May, Mossad attributed two attacks against the Israeli embassy in Stockholm to Iranian-backed criminal networks active in the country. The individuals at the core of these networks are Rawa “The Kurdish Fox” Majid and Ismael “The Strawberry” Abdo. The decision by... MORE
PRC Partnership Diplomacy in the New Era
Executive Summary: The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has an extensive taxonomy of diplomatic relations, with at least 42 unique combinations of adjectives for different partnerships. The PRC has never delineated the ranking of these partnerships explicitly, though there is enough available information to determine... MORE
An Assessment of the Audit of Volkswagen’s Controversial Factory in Xinjiang
Executive Summary: A recently leaked copy of the audit of Volkswagen’s much-criticized joint-venture factory in Xinjiang indicates that claims made by Volkswagen inside the report are misleading or false. These include suggestions that the audit applied the SA8000 social accountability standard, followed International Labor Organization... MORE
Ukraine Eyes American Technology as Cornerstone of Future Energy Mix
Executive Summary: Ukrainian nuclear company Energoatom and US-based Westinghouse are working on implementing agreements to deploy new AP1000 pressurized water reactors, which have emerged as a key component for the future reconstruction of Ukraine’s energy generation sector. Actual construction is unlikely to start before the... MORE
Russia Looks to Target Achilles’ Heel of Western Economies on Ocean Floor
Executive Summary: Western officials have raised concerns about increased Russian naval and sabotage activity, which could potentially target the global underwater cable network vital for international communication, financial transactions, and trade. Russia’s specialized unit, the Main Directorate for Deep-Sea Research (GUGI), possesses a significant fleet... MORE
Kremlin Increases Cossack Forces in Ukraine
Executive Summary: The All-Russian Cossack Society (VsKO) continues to encourage both registered and non-registered Cossacks to participate in Russia’s war against Ukraine, pulling on Kremlin propaganda about the purpose of the war and the Cossack mythos of the tradition of ancient warriors. The Russian government... MORE